Able material method of and apparatus for ultrasonically embossing a sheet of malle

ABSTRACT

A sheet of malleable material such as photographic film or paper is placed over a projecting mark on an anvil, such as a number, and an ultrasonically vibrating horn is placed against the opposite side of the sheet. The sheet can be a continuously moving web, and the anvil can be a cylinder which rotates as the web passes in contact therewith, with the mark being periodically brought into register with the horn. Indexing mechanism can be provided to change the mark with each revolution of the anvil.

United States Patent 1 Loose METHOD OF AND APPARATUS FOR ULTRASONICALLYEMBOSSING A SHEET OF MALLEABLE MATERIAL [75] lnventor: Guenter H. Loose,Webster, N.Y.

[73] Assignee: Eastman Kodak Company,

Rochester, N.Y.

22 Filed: Feb. 16,1972

21 Appl. No.: 226,702

Related US. Application Data [63] Continuation of Ser. No. 858,428,Sept. 16, 1969,

abandoned.

[52] US. Cl. l0l/3 R, 101/32 [51] Int. Cl. 1344b 5/00, B44c 1/24 [58]Field of Search..." 101/1, 3, 32; 117/37; 310/8.2, 8.3

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,339,199 l/l944 Smith 101/3R X 2,704,333 3/1955 Calosi et al. 101/3 R X [11] 3,749,006 [451 July31, I973 2,737,882 3/1956 Early et al 10l/3 R 2,792,779 5/1957 Toeppenet al 101/3 R 3,089,411 5/1963 Sollberger et aL... 101/3 R 3,311,0503/1967 Schmidt.... 101/3 R X 3,191,527 6/1966 Wadey... l0l/1 X 3,263,6078/1966 Jacoby 101/3 R X 3,328,610 6/1967 Jacke ct al 310/82 X PrimaryExaminer-Edgar S. Burr Attorney-W. O. l-lodsdon et al.

[5 7] ABSTRACT A sheet of malleable material such as photographic filmor paper is placed over a projecting mark on an anvil, such as a number,and an ultrasonically vibrating horn is placed against the opposite sideof the'sheet. The sheet can be a continuously moving web, and the anvilcan be a cylinder which rotates as the web passes in contact therewith,with the mark being periodically brought into register with the horn.Indexing mechanism can be provided to change the mark with eachrevolution of the anvil.

2 Claims, 9 Drawing Figures PAIENTEU 3,749,006

GUE/VTEH H LOOSE INVENTOR.

ATTORNEYS WCQW This is a continuation of application Ser. No. 858,428,filed Sept. 16, 1969, now abandoned.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The presentinvention relates to a novel method and apparatus for embossing a markinto a sheet of malleable material such as photographic paper or film,or metal or plastic foil.

2. Description of the Piror Art In the manufacture of photographic paperand film it is usually necessary to place suitable identifying marksthereon such as footage numbers, numbers which will permit tracing ofproducts during inspection procedures, or frame line markings which willimprove the accuracy of splicing moving-picture film. Such markscustomarily have been applied as inks which have certain drawbacks, suchas removability in the subsequent processing of the film orpaper,'anddifferent ink compositions and colors for certain types offilms; and the necessity for a substantial amount of space for dryingthe ink, as well as the need for expensive equipment for this purpose.Furthermore, with the so-called Estar or Mylar type of photographicfilm, which has a polyethylene terephthalate film base, no ink printingis possible because a satisfactory ink for this purpose has not yet beendeveloped.

A mechanical pressure embossing device such as a roll is not acceptablebecause it causes undesirable material displacement and productdistortion, and is a source of dust.

In Calosi et al. Pat. No. 2,748,298 there is described an ultrasonictool for cutting into various materials. One example of a cutting toolis an ultrasonic horn having a raised emblem on its end surface which isadapted to impinge on the material to be drilled, whereby the outline ofthe emblem may be cut into the material. This type of tool is notsuitable for the marking of long webs of film or paper as they arecontinuously processed because it would require intermittent motion ofthe web, with a stop for each impression of the emblem. Moreover, theemblem is cut throughthe sheet rather than simply being embossedthereon. It also is not useable for sequential numbering (footageprinting) of film webs, because for each new emblem a new horn isneeded.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the present invention thereis provided a novel method for embossing a mark into a sheet ofmalleable material, such as photographic paper or film, or metal andplastic foil, comprising providing an anvil having a mark projectingslightly above the surface thereof, placing a sheet of the material onthe anvil with a first side of the sheet covering and in contact withthe mark, and then applying ultrasonically vibrating mechanical pressureimpulses to the opposite side of the sheet. the anvil can be flat, and aflat-faced ultrasonic horn employed; or the anvil can be curved, and acurve-faced horn employed.

More particularly, the method finds its most useful adaptation in theperiodic marking of a continuously moving web using an anvil which iscylindrical in shape and rotates with the web to bring the mark intoembossing position once during each revolution of the anvil.

In effecting this continuous operation the ultrasonically vibratingpressure impulses are applied by maintaining an end face of acontinuously energized ultrasonic horn in fixed spaced relationship tothe surface of the cylindrical anvil, with the spacing being such thatthe web engages the end face only when the slightly projecting mark andthe end face are in register.

The novel apparatus of the invention comprises means for performing thevarious method steps described above, and such apparatus will bedescribed in more detail hereinafter with reference to the drawings.

THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a schematic side elevational view showingapparatus for continuously embossing a web, such as film or paper, bythe novel method;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of an embossing roller or drum seen from the line2-2 in FIG. 1 (with the film web omitted);

FIG. 3 is a side elevational view of the embossing drum as seen from theline 3--3 in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a bottom end view of the ultrasonic horn as seen from the line4-4 in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a side elevational view of the end of the ultrasonic horn;

FIG. 6 is a plan view showing a length of movingpicture film which hasbeen embossed with numbers and frame line markings;

FIG. 7 is a schematic side elevational view of a modified arrangement ofapparatus for the novel embossing method;

FIG. 8 is a side elevational view of a part of a modified embossing drumwherein provision is made for indexing the marks; and

FIG. 9 is a side elevational view showing an embossing drum embodyingthe indexing marking mechanism of FIG. 8.

THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to FIGS. 1-5 of the drawings, thereis shown an ultrasonic transducer T which is mounted by a clamp 1 1 onan upstanding bracket 13. The lower end of the transducer T comprises ametal horn 15 having a curved lower end face 17 positioned adjacent to,but spaced slightly from, a rotatable metal embossing roll or drum 19forming an anvil over which a long web 21 of film or paper is adapted topass continuously. One or more embossing marks 23 project slightly abovethe surface of the anvil drum 19 and are so located that the end face ofhorn 15 will cover the mark or marks when in register therewith.

The ultrasonic transducer T can be constructed in a well-known way, suchas in Calosi et al. Pat. No. 2,748,298 which describes amagnetostrictive transducer, orin .Iacke et al. Pat. No. 3,328,610 whichdescribes a piezoelectric transducer, both designed to vibrate the hornback and forth in a lengthwise direction.

Drum 19 is rotatably mounted on a shaft which is journalled in both abracket 25 and the bracket 13.

A feed roll 27 carries a supply of film or paper to be embossed, and ismounted on bracket 13 for rotation. The web 21 passes from roll 27 underan idler roll 29, over the embossing drum 19, under an idler roll 31,and then around a windup roll 33 which is journalled on bracket 13, andis rotated by a motor 35 mounted on laterally projecting bracket 37.

In the operation of the apparatus the transducer T is continuouslyenergized to produce vibrations ranging anywhere from 20 to 80 kilohertzl KHZ equals 1,000 periods or cycles per second), and the motor 35 isoperated continuously to pull the film 21 continuously over the rotatinganvil 19. The end surface of horn 15 is spaced from the anvil surface byslightly more than the thickness of the film so as not to engage thesurface of the film except every time the slightly projecting mark ormarks 23 come into register with the end of the horn, at which time thefilm is raised slightly by the marks. The vibrating horn beats the filmdown toward the marks and at the same time the vibrations heat thematerial locally where it engages the marks, thus causing the marks 23to be embossed into the bottom sur face of the film.

Referring to FIG. 2 the marks 23 can be a series of inverse numbers,such as l, 2, 3 as well as a series of frameline marks 24 spaced atappropriate distances around the periphery, with all marks arranged on acircle of slightly larger radius than drum 19. Drum 19 also carries nearthe opposite edge a series of spaced cylindrical studs 41 adapted to fitwithin the perforations of a moving-picture film as it passes over thedrum.

FIG. 3 shows the numerical marks 23 and frameline marks 24, each beingcarried by insert blocks which fit within appropriate slots at the sidesof the drum and are held in place by bolts.

FIGS. 4 and show the lower end of horn which isprovided with a longnarrow curved end surface 43 having a somewhatlarger radius of curvaturethan the drum 19, and having the corner thereof on the side facingtowards the approaching film chamfered slightly at 45 to eliminate anypossibility of digging into the film.

FIG. 6 shows a length of moving-picture film 21 which has been embossedwith the numbers and the frameline marks by the apparatus describedabove.

Now referring to FIG. 7, there is shown a modification of the apparatuswhich does not require the idler rolls as in FIG. 1. In thismodification the supply roll 47 and the take-up roll 49 are spaced belowthe embossing drum 19 so that suitable contact is maintained as the film21 passes over the embossing roll.

FIG. 8 shows a modification wherein the embossing roll 19" is providedwith an insert 51 comprising an indexing mechanism of a well-known typehaving four numbering discs 53 and an indexing lever 55 for advancingthe numbering discs sequentially so as to place footage markings on thefilm or paper web being embossed. As shown in FIG. 9 schematically, thelever 55 is actuated by contact with a cam 57 once each revolution ofthe embossing drum. Counters and numbering heads of this 'typearecommercially available from the American Numbering Machine Company ofBrooklyn, N .Y.

I have found that the marks embossed into film and paper in thedescribed manner are permanent, and thus are not removed in theprocessing of photographic film or paper as are ink marks. Moreover, themarks can be embossed into either the emulsion side of the film orpaper, or into the opposite side without becoming removable. When themarks are embossed into the emulsion side, I have found surprisinglythat upon subsequent processing of the film in photographic solutionsthe numbers or other marks are colored black or other color such asorange and easily readable. I attribute this to the fact that localreaction of silver halide or dyes of the emulsion has occurred due tothe localized heating that takes place when the embossing occurs. Mynovel method and apparatus are particularly advantageous because theyeliminate the need for a substantial amount of space and equipment thatare required for accommodating about 30 feet of film to permit thedrying of ink marks when film is printed at 187 feet per minute.Successful marking by my method has been achieved at rates as high as200 and 400 feet of film per minute, using marks which project above thedrum surface a distance less than one-half of the thickness of the web,for example projecting 0.002 inch, and a horn vibration amplitude of0.002 inch toward the film.

It is evident that when marks are to be embossed into a web at severalpositions across its width, a battery of two or more ultrasonic hornscan be employed simultaneously.

The invention has been described in detail with particular reference topreferred embodiments thereof, but it will be understood that variationsand modifications can be effected within thespirit and scope of theinvention.

I claim:

1. A method for embossing indicia into a continuously movable web ofmalleable heat deformable material such as photographic paper or filmcomprising:

providing a cylindrical anvil rotatable around a fixed axis and havingindicia projecting from the surface of the anvil;

guiding a web of malleable heat deformable material around and intocontinuous engagement with a portion of the anvil surface;

simultaneously continuously transporting the web and rotating said anvilwith said web and said anvil surface in contact and moving atsubstantially the same speed to successively bring said indicia intocontact with said web and then into an embossing positionin engagementwith one side of the web once each revolution of said anvil thenremoving said indicia from contact with said web after passing saidembossing position; and

applying ultrasonically vibrating pressure impulses by an ultrasonicvibrating device directly to the side of the web opposite the sideengaged by said anvil at the embossing position for applying heat andpres sure to the web for embossing said indicia into the web when saidindicia and said vibrating device are in register at said embossingposition and while said web is being transported.

2. Apparatus for embossing indicia into a web of malleable material suchas photographic paper or film comprising, in combination:

a rotatable cylindrical anvil having a surface and rotatable past anembossing position;

indicia on said anvil projecting from said surface a predetermineddistance;

means for guiding a web of malleable material into continuous engagementwith said anvil surface, said engagement beginning prior to passing saidembossing position and ending after said embossing position has beenpassed;

means for simultaneously transporting said web and rotating said anvilwith said web and said anvil surface in contact and moving atsubstantially the same speed; and

an ultrasonic vibratory device adapted to be ultrasonically vibrated andhaving an end face positioned at said embossing position adjacent to andspaced from said anvil a distance substantially equal to the combineddistance of said predetermined distance 5 and the thickness of themalleable material, said end face of said vibratory device being adaptedface.

m w 4 n: m

1. A method for embossing indicia into a continuously movable web ofmalleable heat deformable material such as photographic paper or filmcomprising: providing a cylindrical anvil rotatable around a fixed axisand having indicia projecting from the surface of the anvil; guiding aweb of malleable heat deformable material around and into continuousengagement with a portion of the anvil surface; simultaneouslycontinuously transporting the web and rotating said anvil with said weband said anvil surface in contact and moving at substantially the samespeed to successively bring said indicia into contact with said web andthen into an embossing position in engagement with one side of the webonce each revolution of said anvil then removing said indicia fromcontact with said web after passing said embossing position; andapplying ultrasonically vibrating pressure impulses by an ultrasonicvibrating device directly to the side of the web opposite the sideengaged by said anvil at the embossing position for applying heat andpressure to the web for embossing said indicia into the web when saidindicia and said vibrating device are in register at said embossingposition and while said web is being transported.
 2. Apparatus forembossing indicia into a web of malleable material such as photographicpaper or film comprising, in combination: a rotatable cylindrical anvilhaving a surface and rotatable past an embossing position; indicia onsaid anvil projecting from said surface a predetermined distance; meansfor guiding a web of malleable material into continuous engagement withsaid anvil surface, said engagement beginning prior to passing saidembossing position and ending after said embossing position has beenpassed; means for simultaneously transporting said web and rotating saidanvil with said web and said anvil surface in contact and moving atsubstantially the same speed; and an ultrasonic vibratory device adaptedto be ultrasonically vibrated and having an end face positioned at saidembossing position adjacent to and spaced from said anvil a distancesubstantially equal to the combined distance of said predetermineddistance and the thickness of the malleable material, said end face ofsaid vibratory device being adapted when vibrated to directly apply heatand pressure to the material for embossing said indicia into thematerial while said material is being transported and when said indiciais in register with said end face.